Kulndu
Among the varied cities of the interior Sabo Jungles, Kulndu retains an unprecedented aura of safety and normalcy despite its lack of defensive walls or even a standing army to fend off the ever-present threat of nearby Bezmikufundan. Kulndu's people live their lives as if the dark cloud that is King Gwezi were at best an afterthought, and they have lived in almost total peace since the city's founding - all of which is thanks to its legendary founder and the legacy he endowed within the towers of the jungles' oldest academy of arcane knowledge, the Ulsiferu. Founded in 1161, Kulndu served as a center of learning at a crossroads of the Kasima tribes from both the jungles and the nearby plains as well as of the other cultural groups that dwelled within the nearby jungles. Since then, Kulndu has remained a cultural beacon, but without the same imperial aspirations that led to the quick rise and rapid collapse of other nations, such as Niarash. The city refuses to present itself as a threat to its neighbors, but at the same time it carries the combined knowledge of the thaumaturges trained at the Ulsiferu as an unspoken war banner that provides as much of a defense as would an actual army. To date no invading force has come within 20 miles of the city before turning back with brutal losses. Though Kulndu lacks any formal army, the tribes who live within its sphere of influence consider it their informal duty and honor to provide service to the city. In fact, the only guarded points within its claimed territory are the mouth of the Pali Canal on the Swakut River that ultimately flows into Kulndu itself, and the ancient Mchafe Bridge over the Swakut. Much of Kulndu's food and a large amount of goods for trade come as tribute from nearly a hundred villages in the surrounding jungles and plains, even though no formal pacts exist between them. Kulndu's very existence provides security and a place of trade, learning, and cultural diffusion in the western jungles, and in turn it prospers from the people within its lands. Although not constructed upon the banks of one of the jungle's rivers, the city connects to the Swakut River by way of a series of wide, artificial canals that stretch far to the east, providing the city with water and, more importantly, trade and transportation in a land where roads are effectively nonexistent. Standing at the city's center, the Ulsiferu comprises dozens of stone and wood buildings and a ring of ten terraced towers. Beyond the Ulsiferu stands a ring of governmental buildings and private dwellings for the city's ruling council of magistrate-mayors and most learned scholars, whose power arises not through wealth or strength at arms, but through knowledge and skill as politicians and arbiters. Kulndu's markets sprawl throughout a paved ring along the margins of the city's core, beneath the long shadows of its mosaic-decorated towers and multicolored light refracted from the hundreds of hanging glass chimes and beaded charms strung from their windows and balconies. Considered signs of good luck, the city's artisans sell replicas with the notion that the colored light of each charm acts as a window into Kulndu itself, granting a portion of its safety and enlightenment to those who carry the replicas back to their own villages. Category:Locations Category:Locations in the Sabo Jungles Category:Small Cities Category:Settlements Category:Settlements in the Sabo Jungles